Shown here are work positions and functions
in a test kitchen at Hemmets Forskningsinstitut
(the Research Institute for the Home), established
in 1944

Cramped living conditions

A living room before the arrival of
television. The family has gathered
to listen to the radio and read the
newspaper.

Post-war society is marked by a lack of material. Most people live in crowded conditions, with only one room and a kitchen. But, using imagination and will new solutions were found. Practical furniture was designed for ordinary people, using blueprints of standardized models. Patterns were provided by Svenska Slöjdföreningen. Further, Kooperationen KF (the Association of Cooperatives) was actively involved, manufacturing lightweight furniture, which was sent home directly to the customer. Bunk beds, drop-leaf tables and Windsor-style chairs were practical furnishings for a small apartment.

There was during the 1940s an intense interest in designing practical apartments, with useful and child-friendly furniture. Courses were arranged, as well as exhibitions promoting good living. Non-profit organizations, such as Svenska Slöjdföreningen in cooperation with the national government, the Swedish Trade Union Conference and the Federation of Swedish Industries, assured that a level of quality was achieved. The interior designer Lena Larsson was at the forefront of the work to improve apartment standards.

In the United States Charles & Ray Eames
design a softly molded wooden chair.

“Fladdermusfåtöljen” (the bat shaped easy chair), modeled from an English foldable chair from 1877,
was named “Butterfly” in the U.S.